Toddler Table Manners 101

The finer points of good table manners are all but lost on a toddler!

Which fork to use? Why use a fork when you have two perfectly useful hands!

Napkin on your lap? Who cares about a napkin when you're up to your ears in yummy spaghetti sauce!

Indeed, by adult standards, most toddlers have a long way to go when it comes to mastering table manners. But don't despair-with patience and encouragement, your toddler just might grow up knowing how to use a finger bowl! With an early start on Table Manners 101, you can do wonders in establishing meal-time etiquette that'll last a lifetime.

Be Patient With A Toddler's Idea of Manners

Encourage good manners, but always be patient and empathetic to a toddler's young perspective on things. It helps to realize a toddler's insights on table manners such as:

Culinary Curiosity: Toddlers have a natural urge to experiment with new things-and food is no exception. From a toddler's point of view, potatoes need squishing just as much as modeling dough!

Spoons Are Tricky When You're Two: Toddlers have limited skill with cups and spoons, and even with finger feeding. Their meal-time coordination is not fine-tuned enough to prevent food from getting all over faces-and elbows, and the ceiling...

Are We Done Yet? A child this age simply can't sit still at the table for more than 10 to 15 minutes at a time. He'll be eager to get on to playtime or other distractions whether or not the meal is finished.

Encouraging The Basics For Starters

For all their limitations, toddlers are learning the basics of table manners from you-even simple lessons like how to enjoy food and companionship during a meal. The child who sees parents eating neatly, using napkins and utensils properly and speaking politely to each other is the child who will eventually learn his table Ps & Qs.

Encourage basic table manners with these simple tips:

• Make mealtimes pleasant.
• Avoid battles over disliked foods.
• Praise attempts at self-feeding.
• Set a good example with your own manners.

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What To Know About Tantrums

Know anyone who can go from zero to cranky in nothing flat? If you have a toddler, you know exactly how the terrible twos got their name-tantrums! Tantrums are all the result of the toddler's limited ability to cope with frustration. The good news is, there are steps you can take to prevent some of these meltdowns and ways to deal more effectively when they do happen.

What Causes Tantrums?

Tantrums don't happen because toddlers are willful and disobedient, or because you have raised a dreadful child! They simply occur because toddlers haven't learned to accept frustration. When they want to do something but can't, they are overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness and dissatisfaction. The tantrum is simply a release of those feelings. It might help to know that tantrums are common among toddlers. It's estimated that the majority of 2-year-olds have a tantrum at least once a week, which may last from 15 to 30 minutes.

Preventing Tantrums

There are certain steps you can take to help reduce tantrums. Here are some techniques that might help ward off your child's next tantrum:

• Limit your toddler's access to toys and activities that are fascinating but too difficult for his age.
• Watch for fatigue and make sure your child has adequate rest.
• Look out for signs of over stimulation and when they occur switch the child to a calmer activity.
• Try to keep "no's" and "don'ts" to a minimum. Instead of "no's" offer distractions and alternatives: Show how to smell the flowers instead of picking them, for example.